


The Mysterious Overwatch

by RedBeard13



Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: F/M, Gen, olicity - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-11-07
Updated: 2019-05-09
Packaged: 2019-08-20 07:34:45
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 7,939
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16551638
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RedBeard13/pseuds/RedBeard13
Summary: Oliver Queen was the Green Arrow, old news. That particular section of news was now ancient and no longer of interest to anyone in Star City. Sure, in the beginning, it was all people could talk about and yes, the press wanted to live inside Oliver Queen, girls were flocking around him even more than usual and the police hated him even more than ever. Sure, but now, now the press wanted to know who Oliver Queen was working with.4 college school drop out, a consistent D student in high school and well known drunk and playboy, there was no way a man with that rap sheet was putting mastermind criminals behind bars with no help. Something just didn’t sit right and the press and people of Star City were determined to get to the bottom of it.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi everyone, this is my first fic. I am a big fan of Olicity and it's been fun working on an alternative story for them! I hope you like it!

Oliver Queen was the Green Arrow, old news. That particular section of news was now ancient and no longer of interest to anyone in Star City. Sure, in the beginning, it was all people could talk about and yes, the press wanted to live inside Oliver Queen, girls were flocking around him even more than usual and the police hated him even more than ever. Sure, but now, now the press wanted to know who Oliver Queen was working with. 

4 college school drop out, a consistent D student in high school and well known drunk and playboy, there was no way a man with that rap sheet was putting mastermind criminals behind bars with no help. Something just didn’t sit right and the press and people of Star City were determined to get to the bottom of it. 

 

\----------

 

There was blood on the floor. Oliver Queen was bleeding onto his kitchen floor searching for the first aid kit he thought he had seen when he moved in a couple of months ago. He could stitch himself up easily but the whole looking for the kit thing, that would be a problem. For a second, he thought about calling John Diggle, his teammate, and best friend, but today was Lyla’s birthday and he didn’t want to interrupt. Thea was in the Maldives with Roy and Quentin Lance would rather eat dirt then come to his help. He had no one on else.

_Beep, Beep._

His phone. Oliver reached for his phone in his leather jacket and checked his phone. 

**OW: Are you okay?**

Overwatch. His ever guiding light. He had forgotten about her, though it wouldn’t really matter. Oliver had never actually met Overwatch in real life and only communicated when it was absolutely essential. 

He took a deep breath and typed back with a little difficulty:

**OQ: Fine. A little bruised but alive.**

While he waited for her response, Oliver dug around his cupboards looking for the kit. He was starting to lose a lot more blood.

_Beep, Beep._

**OW: The kits on top of the dishwasher. On the left.**

Oliver stared blankly at the text and as if not believing it, he walked gingerly to the dishwasher and opened the cabinet above it. There, on the left, was the first aid kit. Shaking his head in disbelief, Oliver stitched himself up quickly, swallowed down some painkillers and went back to his phone. 

**OQ: How did you know?**

**OW: Overwatch, remember?**

**OQ: Seriously, how?**

She took a long while to respond but Oliver waited. 

**OW: I watched you take a hit at the docks, it took you longer than usual to type back and John is with Lyla so I knew you wouldn’t call for help.**

He was stunned. Another beep. 

**OW: Also, when you asked me to set up your home with the best security, I made sure to place kits all around the house. So… yeah.**

Overwatch. A damn surprise in his life and a savior almost every night. 

**OQ: Thank you.**

**OW: Anytime. Well, not anytime because I do have to sleep but, you know what I mean.**

He laughed and walked to his room for some much-needed shut-eye. 

_Beep, Beep._

**OW: You’re welcome, Oliver.**

 

\----------

Felicity Smoak had never been one to sit still. She was easily bored and managed to grab any piece of technology next to her and find something to keep her busy. Her job at Queen Consolidated was fine, busy sometimes but mostly, she was a glorified IT assistant, helping employees with things like _How to switch on your laptop to Yes, I do like the Note 9. Yes, I can help you set it up. No, I don’t know your password._ The latter was a teensy lie, finding out their passwords was a slip of the hand for her, but they didn’t need to know that. 

__

__

She remembered times when she was younger where her mother would implore her to just be like other kids and watch some TV, but Felicity never wanted to do that. I want to build something mum she would tell her mother who would then roll her eyes and move on. It was always like that. Felicity, dreaming big, her mum bringing her back down to earth. Felicity never blamed her mother for it though, she had been heartbroken by Felicity's absentee father and worked two jobs just to keep food on the table and give Felicity the semblance of a normal life. No, Felicity did not blame her mother: she was eternally grateful. They had their differences but at the core, it would always be the two of them. 

When she got a job offer at Queen Consolidated after graduating from MIT, she spoke to her mother, worrying about whether her mum wanted her to move back home. 

“Felicity Megan Smoak! You take that job right now and buy me a decent pair of shoes with your first pay cheque” she said, and that was that. Felicity joined QC and for the most part, she was happy-ish. Bored but stable. 

Then the Arrow happened. 

A man in a green suit, swinging around Starling, locking up bad guys and saving people. She was intrigued. In a city that seemed to only care about gossip, the rich and ignoring the glades, this was a surprise. She had grown up reading comics about great heroes but she never thought she would ever actually see one. While others discussed how dangerous the man was and how no one was above the law, Felicity kept track and felt a sense of pride and safety that at least someone out there was doing something. Sure she had a boring job that would make no difference in the world, but she could live vicariously through this strange hero. 

“You seriously have a hero fetish,” her work friend Alicia said to her one day after a heated argument about the ethics of the said Arrow. 

“I don’t!” Felicity replied, irritated that all everyone could ever do was link things to sex. “I just think he’s doing some good. I wish I could do something like that.” 

The last line she said mostly to herself but she knew Alicia could hear her and would report back to the office clique about how Smoak was being weird as usual. It’s not that they weren’t nice, they just didn’t get her. No one really did. Plus it didn't help that they knew, if she wanted to, she could do all their jobs without a second thought and save the company a hell of a lot of money. 

It was that day that Felicity met the Arrow. A coincidence that changed her life forever. 

 

\----------

Felicity had been working late, again. QC was under a strange amount of cyber attacks. They still didn’t know what the attackers were looking for but Felicity was going to find out. She hated mysteries and had been staying late every night of the week trying to solve the problem. She stopped the attackers and created a stronger virus to stop them next time, and to everyone else in the team, that was enough but for Felicity, she needed to know what they wanted. The bank accounts were secure, applied sciences files were untouched too. What else would QC have that people would want? 

It was this mystery she pondered over as she drove home at 11PM that night. With her stereo playing her favourite podcast and thinking about what to eat for dinner, she drove out of the QC building and wasn’t paying attention to the white van that came out of nowhere, barreling to the side of her car, immediately crashing into her. 

The crash was loud in her ears, her glasses lost. _I’m fine, I’m fine_ she told herself, noting that the crash was on the other side of the car. Her head had hit her window and she had a little cut that didn't hurt yet. 

____

____

Breathing was hard, her seatbelt gripped at her so tightly she was sure it would leave a mark on her chest. With shaking hands, she unbuckled her belt and opened her car door. 

She was in the middle of the road and no one came running at her. Not even the QC guards. That’s weird, she thought to herself, trying to find the strength in her legs to walk. 

“Get back in the car!” A voice shouted at her. A man, a very tense man. She looked up and saw a white van and some movement. A man was being thrown and- a gunshot. Felicity ducked instinctively, her knees and hands cutting on the glass that littered the road. She could hear more gunshots and grunts of pain. People were shouting as well but she couldn’t hear well. Her phone! She remembered. If she got her phone, she could call the police. She looked up and through the haze of not having her glasses, saw more people surrounding the van. They had surrounded what looked like two people and she knew that none of them were cops. Searching for her phone would take too long and might catch their attention, she decided. But, she did have her smartwatch. A secret design of hers that outdid the other models out there. With a little hacking, she managed to send an SOS message to every person on the police squad and news station. With a little prayer that it would work, Felicity knelt back down ignoring the pain and waited. 

Then the sirens started. A large number from the sound of it and within minutes, lights blared from the opposite side of the road. Peeking from where she was kneeling, Felicity noticed the group of men disperse and the two remaining men moving away as well. With a sigh of relief, Felicity knelt back down and waited. 

“Miss, are you alright?” A voice said to her and she startled so violently, the glass cut deeper into her kneecaps. She turned to look at the source of the voice, but he was hidden in the shadows. 

The police were closer now.

“Miss?” The stranger said again. 

Felicity cleared her throat. “I’m fine.”

He turned to leave. 

“Wait!” Felicity called out, “Are you the one who crashed into me?” 

“No,” The man said, back turned to her. “But I am the reason it happened. I’m sorry about that.” 

“You’re the Arrow.” She stated. She could see the profile of a quiver and arrows. 

He didn’t turn back to her. The police cars were now reaching them, she turned towards the sound. When she went back to the Arrow, he was gone. 

She told the police the truth, or at least the important stuff. Her car was crashed into by a white van, there were men fighting. No, she didn’t know who sent that message to the police. No, she did not see what happened, her glasses broke. No, she had no enemies, not that knew of at least. Yes, she was in pain. No, there was no one she wanted to call. 

The next morning, after finally returning home from the hospital and taking a day off, she decided that she was right to believe in the Arrow. His apology was sincere and she knew that he didn’t mean for her to get hurt. He was a good man and she was going to find out who he was. Not to out him or even do anything about it, she just wanted to know the identity of the man who was kind enough to keep her safe, apologize to her, even when he had absolutely no need to. 

 

\----------

[The same night]

“Oliver? Come in Oliver!” It was Diggle. Oliver knew he was worried. He was supposed to follow Dig back to the foundry but he had to stay back to make sure the girl was safe. 

“I’m here Dig. I’ll be there in 5.” 

When he entered the foundry, Oliver found Dig at the computers, watching the news. 

“How did they show up so quickly?” He said by way of greeting. 

“I think the better question is how did they know,” Oliver replied, sitting down next to Dig. 

“I don’t know Man, but I’m grateful they did. We were not ready for Quinns men.” 

Oliver said nothing. He knew Dig was right, this was out of his expertise. Manpower he could handle, but a team of cyber specialists guarded by the most powerful men in Starling? He was clueless and he hated it. 

“Is the girl okay?" Dig asked him. 

“Yeah,” Oliver said dismissively. “She knew I was the Arrow.”

“You talked to her?” 

“I made sure she was okay. She talked to me.”

Dig was quiet. He then said, “Question is, will she tell the cops she saw you?”

“It doesn’t matter,” Oliver responded, getting on his feet. His muscles aching from the fight and his head aching from all the questions he had no answers to. “She works at QC so they won’t bother her much and if she becomes a problem, I’ll deal with it as Oliver Queen.”

“You mean fire her?”

“If it comes to that. I don’t think she’ll be a problem though.”

“And why is that?”

Oliver thought about it. The fierce determination in the blue eyes. 

“Just a feeling, I guess. Either way, we have bigger problems.” Oliver walked to his glass case, slowly peeling his suit off. “Those men came to QC for something. The hackers they’re protecting are untouchable and I have absolutely no idea where to go from here Dig.”

“Weapons, drugs…” He went on, “I know how to handle those. But this, it’s not just that we’re not equipped, it’s that this is something we haven’t faced and that is something that makes me… worried.” 

Dig regarded him thoughtfully. “We could involve Argus.”

Oliver turned to his best friend. “No. No way am I letting Amanda Waller near my mission.”

“So what’s the plan, Oliver? Sit here twiddling our thumbs or maybe give 'Hacking for dummies' a quick read?” 

Oliver just glared at him.

“We’ll figure it out Dig. I need to be home before Thea or my mother notice I’m gone.” 

On his way home, Oliver felt an uneasiness that had him itching to hit something. He had never felt inadequate, yet today… Could he really save Starling if he only had half the skills? He wasn’t sure. He would not bring anyone else into his crusade but he did need help. Maybe 'hacking for dummies' wasn’t such a bad idea after all.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone, I'm sorry for taking so long. I'm really happy you like this story. God, I hope it actually goes somewhere. Writing is hard but let's see where this story takes us.

Felicity was going insane, that was the only explanation for it. She had been awake for 5 hours and came only to one conclusion, the arrow incident and the cyber attacks were connected. It made sense to her, as she typed furiously, her hair looking like a nest and the pen in her mouth crunched into almost nothing. It made sense but it couldn’t. What would QC have to do with the Arrow and if she, a certified genius, couldn’t tell what the hackers wanted, how could the Arrow? She had no doubt that he was smart, but no way that brawny man who still shot arrows was a genius. Kind yes, genius, not likely.

She snorted at the thought and closed her laptop. If, hypothetically, there was a connection, did the Arrow want to stop the attacks? Did he know that she stopped them first? And that day she did, why was he still there? It made no sense.

But more importantly, where were the QC guards when the accident happened? Too many questions and not enough answers.

And, cursing her inquisitive nature, Felicity decided to do the one thing she promised never to do: hack into QC. The day her ex-boyfriend was arrested for their hacktivism, she had drawn a strict line and promised not to go over her job role. But she had to know.

And so she went, going through the very firewalls she had built, searching, searching until she found Tempest. A side company under QC but not legally registered. An offshore account that had an impressive amount of money and warehouses all over starling, disguised as storage for QC. This was it, Tempest was a secret project and someone was trying to access it.

An hour later, Felicity had half an answer at least. The hackers were looking for the location of a machine and it’s prints. The information hidden so deep that she spent at least half an hour planting a virus just to get through.

Two hours later, Felicity was terrified and half hopeful that she was actually crazy. The alternative was terrifying and she didn’t know what to do with the information. A machine created under Tempest, designed to destroy. A bomb controlled by two remote controllers, strong enough to destroy a city. _A city._

And then came harder questions, why was Tempest under QC? Yes, the Queen family was notorious for scandals but killing people? It didn’t seem their style. And the CFO, Walter Steele was such a kind man, she refused to believe he was part of this. She had another thing to consider as well, a far more difficult one. Who could she tell? The cops in Starling would arrest her for hacking and they barely had the systems to deal with any sort of crime, how would they handle cybercrime?

She knew then that she only had one choice, but she had tried hard not to think of it. The Arrow. She wanted to know who he was, but now, she had to find out who he was and actually contact him. He killed a few people, how could she trust he wouldn’t kill her after she gave him the information? But the thought of such a terrible machine existing, going into the wrong hands was too scary for her. She had to do what she used to do best- Track familiar patterns until his secret was out.

She started at the beginning- when the Arrow showed up, where he showed up and most importantly the frequencies of any devices he would use. Then she hacked into the traffic cams and created an algorithm to track men of his profile. Three locations popped up, to her surprise: The starling police station, Verdant- the club in the glades and QC. With the sixth cup of coffee in her, Felicity tracked the frequencies in the 3 areas and where they overlapped. It gave her two answers. Two profiles that had identical patterns and startled her so violently, she poured hot coffee over herself.

Holding her wrist under a steady stream of water, unable to keep herself from shaking, Felicity replayed what she found out: Oliver Queen and John Diggle were the Arrow.

* * *

After a significant amount of throwing up and double checking the results, then deleting every trace of her presence, Felicity dived under her comforter and vowed to never leave. Oliver Queen! She thought panicked. Of course, she knew him, everyone did. The famous Oliver Queen, handsome troublemaker who disappeared for 5 years then reappeared abruptly, the same time the Arrow did, Felicity realized.

The first time she saw Oliver Queen was at the opening of the applied sciences division. He was drunk and seemed intent to ruin his father's legacy. Felicity thought he was spoiled and rude and hated him, even more, when Walter Steele had to go up to the podium after Queen toppled off and apologize, his face crushed. Felicity didn’t know Walter that well, but he was the one who hired her and praised her talent. Sometimes she wondered if she had a daddy complex, but anyway.  
One year later, Oliver Queen became the CEO of QC, strutting through the offices with his bodyguard John Diggle. People at the office had split opinions- Some said he was snobbish and was never around. Others thought he had changed and was still learning. It didn’t help that he also owned Verdant with his friend Tommy Merlyn, a club with a tardy reputation. It was there that the first vertigo bust had occurred, a fact that now had Felicity thinking that Arrow/ Oliver had planned it all.

Who was Oliver Queen and what the hell had happened while he was away?

Felicity believed she was a good person. She never thought herself a coward but the thought of talking to Oliver Queen was somehow more terrifying than when she thought about talking to the Arrow. There was something about Oliver that intimidated her and she wouldn’t let herself be vulnerable to a man like him, not when she had so many reasons to doubt him.

She knew what she had to do.

* * *

 

John Diggle was a patient man, god knows he had survived war waiting for the right time to strike, but, dealing with Oliver Queen was going to ruin it all. John had immense respect for Oliver. When Oliver revealed his secret to John, John was genuinely surprised. What looked like a spoiled, selfish child that he was assigned to - became a friend who understood scars, better than anyone else did. Their friendship turned to brotherhood and John knew he wouldn't have anyone else watching his back. All of these thoughts mattered little when Oliver Queen refused to accept that they needed help. Three days had passed and they were not even a little close to catching the hackers who were slowly creeping around them, tracking their movements while attacking QC and Merlyn Global. Three days of watching Oliver pummel a boxing dummy to a pulp, his hands bloody and eyes bloodshot. He hadn’t been sleeping.

John decided to brave his wrath and stepped in, his hands held in front of his as if he was surrendering.

“Oliver man, you need to stop.”

Oliver just glared at his friend, his breath coming in pants.

“I’m fine, John.” He practically growled, walking towards the computers.

“No you’re not,” John pushed, “You’re not sleeping and we’re not even close to catching these guys. You- We need help, Oliver.” He stopped, watching Oliver frozen in front of the machines.

“Oliver, man, maybe it’s time to-” He was cut off by a high pitched sound that had him covering his ears then a blackout.

The computers came to life, static filled the screens and then, a voice surrounded them. A voice disguised by a modulator, similar to Olivers.

“I have a message and I come in peace.”

John was instantly at Oliver's side, both at the ready.

“It’s them,” Oliver said, his voice strained, his hands reaching for his bow helplessly.

“I am not who you’ve been looking for. I have information you need.”

“WHO ARE YOU?!” Oliver shouted, his hand crashing against the steel table.

“Oliver-” John started, but the voice interrupted him.

“My name is Overwatch. I know what you’ve been looking for and I can help. I know what they want and I know how to stop them.”


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone, so it goes on. I will try to keep writing and updating more.

 

_[Back in the present…]_

 

There was a woman in his room, he kept his eyes closed, curious to see what she would do. She wasn’t smooth, she stumbled through the room, tripping over his gear and walking noisily towards him. She clearly wasn’t an expert at this. As she moved closer, he could smell her. Vanilla with a hint of something sweet and fresh, like fabric softener. Comforting. She was right next to him now, he could feel her warmth and he wondered why he wasn’t stopping her. An amateur like her was a piece of cake. He didn’t move, hearing her crouch down near his head and sense her hand come close to his face.  She caressed his face lightly, lingering over his stubble and he felt himself lean into the touch. 

 “Oliver…” The voice whispered, he opened his eyes- and jerked awake. 

Oliver didn’t understand it. He had been having the same dream for the past couple of months. Sometimes he would see Laurel, sometimes Shado and other times, he wouldn’t see anyone at all, like as if he was looking through a murky glass. Shaking the confusion away, Oliver touched the stitches around his torso delicately remembering the fight with the triad last night and how overwatch saved him with the kit and so much more. He glanced at the clock, realized he was going to be late yet again and rushed for a shower. 

“Morning John,” Oliver said, smoothly entering the back of his car.  

“Morning boss,” John replied, smiling wider when Oliver rolled his eyes. Sometimes this facade they both put on was exhausting, for them both. Oliver consistently questioned whether it was worth it. Now that everyone knew he was the Green Arrow, he didn’t have to hide behind being the CEO of QC anymore and he definitely could reveal that John Diggle was his teammate, not his driver or bodyguard. But this was about John, not Oliver. They had discussed it when his identity was revealed and John understood where Oliver was coming from- John had a family, his daughter was only one year old and his marriage still new, especially with Lyla working with Argus. Oliver couldn't do that to him. 

 

“So… You gonna update me on last night?” John said, interrupting Oliver's thoughts.  

“Later. Let’s get through the crows first.” 

 

They had reached the office and as always, there was a massive crowd waiting for him. Reporters, groupies, fans, anti-vigilante supporters and once in a while, angry enemies of the Green Arrow. The latter he had encountered four times by his count. Disgruntled family members or messengers from local crime lords all trying to get rid of the Green Arrow now that he was out in the open. Another reason why he needed John Diggle to remain the ever faithful driver: he kept the crowds away and was inconspicuous enough to notice the danger before it went too far. The last time it happened, John took a bullet for him, luckily he had a vest on. The crowd was thinner after that. 

 

“Mr Queen! Mr Queen! Now that you’re out as the Arrow, who do you work with? Can you tell us about your team?”  

“Is it true you’re being backed by the government?”

“Is it true that Ms Laurel Lance is your personal lawyer AND partner in crime?” 

 

This. This was why keeping Dig at a distance made sense. The press was getting bored with him already and his enemies were finding it harder to reach him. If they knew who his team was, they would go after them, and though he could protect himself, he wasn’t sure his team could do the same. 

Well, maybe Dig and Roy could. He wasn’t sure about overwatch though, but he would think on that later, he told himself. 

The press consistently brought up Laurel too, despite not having been seen together in over two years and her father being a staunch Anti Arrow crusader. If the press knew just how much Laurel hated the fact that he was the Arrow, they wouldn’t be asking these questions. He supposed he couldn’t blame them, he had not been seen with a woman in years and any romantic entanglement was so far out of range for him, especially now. 

“Oliver, you good?” Dig asked shaking Oliver out of his thoughts. 

“Yeah. I’m good.” 

 They stormed past the journalists, Oliver ignoring the shouts and the questions, taking a deep breath of relief when the security guards shut the doors on the journalists. He and John walked into the executive elevator and stood in silence. 

 “John?” Oliver asked after a few seconds, his hands covering his face is sudden exhaustion, “Do you think it’ll ever get easier?” 

 Setting his hand down, Oliver glanced at John who was looking at him with understanding. 

 “One day.”

 "Do you really believe that” Oliver replied, his eyebrows raised. 

 “Yup. I believe that they’ll get bored of you soon enough. Especially now that the Batman has become more popular.” 

 Oliver considered. “I’m not sure if I feel relieved, or jealous.” 

 John just chuckled. 

 Entering his office, Oliver was surprised to see Walter. 

 “Walter!” He said warmly, “Did we have a meeting?” 

 “No, Oliver” Walter replied, sitting on the opposite side of the desk. “I just wanted to ask you how you were. I saw the journalists waiting for you, and to ask you if you would be free for dinner tonight? Your mother and I would love to spend some time with you.” 

 A guilty pang hit Oliver, painful enough to make him pause. Ever since he came out as the Arrow, he had avoided his family, almost successfully. He knew Thea thought he was being an asshole but the truth was, he needed to be distant lest his enemies or journalists targeted them too. The stories circulating now was that the family had disowned him and hated him for his vigilantism. The Queen Consolidated PR team had requested to put out a press release with him and Moira together but he refused. After that moment, the whole office thought it was true as well. What they didn’t know was that he and Overwatch worked together to create the fake news, making it trend and pushed fake stories of conflict to the various gossip sites. It wasn’t easy to convince her, but after explaining why he had to do it, she agreed. 

 “Walter,” Oliver said looking down at his knees. “I can’t do that.” 

 Walter was silent for a while, making Oliver look up at him. He was looking at him softly, a small smile on his face. 

 “Oliver, your mother and I are not stupid. We know why you’re avoiding us, we know that you’re the one who planted the articles about the so-called family conflict.” 

 Oliver knew he didn’t do a good job of hiding his surprise. 

 “So…” Walter continued smiling wider, “I think we can be a little honest with each other. Your mother and I can take of ourselves, no matter who comes after you, but we do know that maybe Thea cannot. So, we’ll make sure no one knows that we’re meeting. No one will know that you’re there and I’m sure the Arrow can find a way to be a little sneaky.” He finished, winking. 

 Oliver opened his mouth, then shut it, unsure what to say. 

 “It’s important Oliver,” Walter said, his eyes a lot more serious. 

 After a pause, Oliver nodded. 

 “Good. Let’s meet at 8” Walter said, standing up, straightening his suit and turning away to walk out. 

 Oliver agreed and watched his stepfather walk away until something came to his mind. 

 “Walter, wait! How did you know the stories were leaked by me?” 

 Walter turned back to him with a mischievous smile. “You have your people Oliver, I have mine.” 

 Oliver might have looked a little alarmed because Walter chuckled and said “Relax. I had one of my most trusted IT associates look into it, discreetly.” 

 “Who?” Oliver asked, intrigued. 

 Walter raised his eyebrow, “Why? Are you going to get rid of them?” 

 “Of course not,” Oliver replied quickly, affronted. “I’m just curious. No offence, but I didn’t know our IT team were particularly skilled at these type of things.” 

 Walter opened the door to his office and smiled slightly, “No offence taken. You’re quite right, but this one is a talented one that I had to fight tooth and nail to get.” 

 “Who is it?” Oliver asked, more curious than before. 

 “Felicity Smoak. Come on Oliver, I would have thought you would have taken the time to know all your employees and their skill level.” And with another smile and a “See you at 8” he walked out. 

 

* * *

Felicity Smoak. He knew that name but he wasn’t sure why. He beckoned John to his office. 

 “Yes, sir?” John asked, taking the seat Walter just vacated. 

 “No need for that John. Anyway, does the name Felicity Smoak sound familiar to you?” 

 John thought about it for a minute then said “Oh yeah! The girl who was caught up in the fight outside QC when we were attacked by hackers, remember? A year ago? She was that IT girl who left work late and recognized you as the Arrow.” 

 “Oh yeah,” Oliver remembered her faintly. “Did you look into her?” 

 “I did. One second.” He got his phone out and read out: “MIT graduate, mother in Las Vegas, lives over on Brown Street, by the deli. Only child, recruited by Walter and has been working here for two years. She leads the IT team and is known as the best in the office.” 

 John looked up suspiciously then asked “Why? Are you looking for a new IT recruit?””

 Oliver looked at him and said a little too sharply “Never. It’s just… Walter just told me she is the one who discovered that I leaked the news about the family drama, on his request. I just wanted to know who she is and if she’ll be a problem.” 

 John thought about it, glancing down at the picture on his phone. An innocent looking blond girl. “I don’t think so. She never said anything about meeting you, to anyone and she is also Walters protegee so it makes sense that he trusts her.”

 Oliver nodded as John continued “Plus, what else have you got to hide Oliver? Everyone already knows you’re the Arrow. No more secrets remember?”

 “There’s still the team.” 

 “Ah.” John said, his eyes wider with understanding, “That’s what this is about.” 

 Oliver stood up, walking to the glass window, staring at the city. 

 John went on, “Oliver, Roy and I can handle ourselves fine. We can defend ourselves so you shouldn’t be worried.” 

 “I know that.” Oliver replied, a bit stiffly. 

 “But?” 

 Oliver paused then said, “Overwatch.”

 He turned to look at John who was smirking slightly. 

 “What?” Oliver asked him, feeling defensive. 

 “Nothing. It’s just… interesting. How you worry about Overwatch being discovered when we haven’t discovered who she is either. We’re lucky she admitted she was a  _she_ . Oliver… so far she has kept herself secret, distant and brilliant enough to do what we do and not get caught. Plus helping us not get caught either. She can take care of herself.” 

 Oliver stayed silent, thinking about what John was saying. 

 “Unless…”John continued, his voice getting lighter. “Unless you want her to be in danger? Enough to reveal herself to us for protection?” John was definitely laughing at him. 

 “Don’t be ridiculous John.” He snapped, walking back behind his desk. “Why would I want that?” 

 “Because…” John said, crossing his arm, smiling wider than ever. “That’s what you do. You protect those you love. You need to see them in front of you, safe. That’s the only way you can feel safe too. Especially when it comes to… you know, women.” 

 Oliver didn’t respond. He didn’t want to think about John was saying, the claim he made about protecting Overwatch, grouping her as one of the people he loved. How could he love someone he didn’t even know? But it was true that he wanted to protect her. She was part of his team after all and she was a valuable resource. He couldn’t lose her. 

 “You need to be careful Oliver,” John said, breaking him out of his reverie. His voice abruptly serious. 

 Oliver looked up at him, surprised. 

 “We don’t know who she is, where she is or… her situation.” Oliver raised his eyebrow. 

 John continued, “She could be with someone. Engaged or married, to a man or a woman.” Oliver flushed, a feeling of intense discomfort growing in him. “She might be a mother or-” 

 “Enough John,” Oliver said, knowing his voice sounded defeated and tired. It was early, too early for this conversation. “I get it. Just… enough.” 

 John nodded and stood up, leaving Oliver to start his work day. 


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone, here's the next chapter. I hope you like it! 
> 
> The show has been making so upset lately so I would rather focus on this.

 

 

_(Back to the beginning)_

 

Felicity didn’t think hacking into the Arrow’s embarrassing system would be the best idea but it definitely beat showing up at their lair or even leaving a polite note (Something she seriously considered). Hacking and taking over their system was the perfect way to make them listen to her and an opportunity to display her skills. Of course, she knew there was going to be _some_ backlash but threats and growling, that took her aback, though she knew she was naive for not expecting it. 

 

“WHO ARE YOU?!” The Arrow aka Oliver Queen aka her boss was shouting at her. She rolled her eyes at the sound- like as if yelling would help in any way. She heard him slam something down on a table and flinched. 

 

“My name is Overwatch. I know what you’ve been looking for and I can help. I know what they want and I know how to stop them.” She replied, hoping the modulator would portray the calm she was trying to exude. 

 

There was silence on the other side and then- 

 

“Who are you.” The Arrow said, his voice low and much more quieter and frightening. 

 

This wasn’t a game and if she didn’t explain, he could easily trash the system. 

 

“I am an ally.” She heard his scoff at that. “I have seen what the hackers can do and I know you need help. That is why I am here.” 

 

Silence again. These men really had the broody silence thing down. 

 

“If you are to be trusted, why not reveal yourself? Why hide and hack our system like a criminal?” Another voice asked. John Diggle she presumed, with arms the size of a pillar. 

 

“Because…” She said, “I don’t trust you either. I read the news and know what the Arrow team does. As much as you do good, your… methods are violent and I do not want to be on the receiving end of that. And seeing how this conversation is going, I am glad I didn’t show up in person.” 

 

They were quiet again, then she heard whispers of things like  _Let’s see how this goes_ to  _this is a mistake._

 

Finally, the Arrow said “How do we know you’re on the good side and are not one of the hackers?” 

 

She had considered this and knew only one way of making them trust she was not a criminal. 

 

“Because,” She cleared her throat, “I know you are Oliver Queen, CEO of Queen Consolidated, and John Diggle, bodyguard of said CEO and war veteran. And I have not told anyone nor am I going to.” 

 

* * *

Oliver hated surprises. After the island, this hatred increased and he knew his need for control was sometimes frightening, even to him. He tried to loosen up but this situation right here was the reason he had to be vigilant, all the time. 

 

_“I know you are Oliver Queen, CEO of Queen Consolidated, and John Diggle, the bodyguard of said CEO and war veteran. And I have not told anyone nor am I going to.”_

 

The voice from the computer had said those words and Oliver snapped one of his arrows in half. His face, he knew, looked like Johns- Shocked and horrified. They had kept their identity so secret and yet here was a stranger revealing all. Not only was he hacked today, but he was also outed. As he steadied his breathing, he couldn't remember the last time he felt so helpless. 

 

It was silent in the lair. Neither John or he knew what to say.

 

“Umm,” The voice interrupted. “I understand this is a shock and you have no reason to trust me, but I am going to send you a file and when you go through it, you’ll see I am legit and want to help.” 

 

The computer beeped and a file was downloading. Giving him a nod, John opened the file and sifted through the various documents. It was a map of what the hackers were looking for, a company called Tempest, a record of a warehouse at QC and…  _blueprints_ . Not just any blueprints, Oliver realized with a start. These were bomb blueprints. 

 

“What in gods name…” John whispered, 

 

This was worse, so much worse than they imagined. How did this person find this out? But before he could ask, the voice interrupted him. 

 

“As you can see, there is a company called Tempest under Queen Consolidated and the hackers are trying to access the blueprints and what I believe is the location of these bombs. Bombs that can destroy a city. That is why I reached out to you.” 

 

Oliver glanced at John then said, “Why come to us?” 

 

The voice paused then said, “The police do not know how to deal with a situation like this. And… You are Oliver Queen and The Arrow, I think if anyone can handle this, it would be you. On both fronts.” 

 

“How do you know I am not part of this? I am the CEO after all of QC. I could be part of all this.” 

 

“Forgive me Mr Queen, but I do not think you would be capable.” The voice sounded humoured, ”You’re the Arrow which means, no matter your methods, you believe in right and wrong and I also know you two have been trying to look for these hackers and what they want for months. If you were part of this, you wouldn’t have bothered.” Well. 

 

“When did you find all this out?” John asked, ever the soldier, ever practical. 

 

“Yesterday morning. I debated telling you guys, did my research and… here we are.” 

 

“Research? On us yes?” John asked, 

 

“Yes,” the voice replied, “I found out about these hackers and didn’t know what to do or who to reach out to. My only option was the Arrow but he, I mean you, are not exactly easy to reach.” 

 

“How did you come across these hackers? What piqued your interest if you’re not a criminal?” Oliver cut in. Something didn’t seem right. If this so called ally had this information, what made them look for it in the first place? 

 

“I can’t tell you that.” The voice said. “I found out is all you need to know.” 

 

He exchanged a look with John, then said “Look, we don’t know you or trust you. Show yourself and then maybe we’ll consider it.” 

 

The voice was quiet then said softly, “I can’t do that.”

 

“Why?” John jumped in, “Are you in hiding? A double agent? Wait… Are you a kid?” 

 

Oliver looked at him incredulously but waited for the response. 

 

“None of those. Look… I cannot tell you who I am and it’s not for a big bad reason. I just can’t and more importantly, I don’t want to. I want to help you on this issue and then I will leave you to your blissful vigilanting.” 

 

The voice had humour. A person was behind that voice and he could not believe John was seriously considering this. Oliver took a step forward and said “Please, um, call back in an hour. We need to talk about this.” and with a quick ‘Okay’ the voice was gone. 

 

Oliver didn’t say anything. He walked to the small silver cabinet, pulled out a bottle of whiskey, two glasses and walked to the round table at the corner of the lair.

 

* * *

Well, all things considered, it had not gone that badly, Felicity thought to herself. The Arrow was as temperamental as she assumed he would be and they asked good questions. She didn’t expect them to trust her but this was the only choice they had to stop the hackers and the people behind the attacks. 

 

It was strange, she was just on a call with the Arrow. The hero she had admired from afar, wishing for her courage to one day save people too, and here she was now… in the shadows speaking to the said hero who clearly thought she was a villain. What a wild ride. She couldn’t even imagine what his face would look like if he knew who she was, where she worked… He wouldn’t take her seriously and as Oliver Queen, respect for women wasn’t something he was known for. Though as the Arrow, he had saved her and apologized for the incident so there was that. The man was confusing and this whole Dr Jekyll situation didn’t need her thrown in the mix. 

 

They had asked her to call back in an hour, so she would. In the meantime, she thought about what she would do if they said no. 

 

* * *

“You’re not thinking straight Oliver! We need help and this- this might be it!” John was saying, frustration in his voice. 

 

Oliver was pacing, his whiskey glass now empty and his hands in fists. “John, we don’t _know_ this person. This person hacked into _our_ system and then asked _us_ to trust them! Who does that? How can you, a soldier, trust a stranger?” 

 

John was quiet, contemplative. “Because,” he finally said, “We don’t have any other way.” 

 

That shut Oliver up. John was right, of course, he was. They not only had no way of dealing with hackers, but there was also no way they were ever going to get the information the stranger did AND this stranger knew their identity. They were stuck. 

 

“Fine.” 

 

John looked up at Oliver in surprise. 

 

“But…” Oliver continued, “We do this my way.” 

 

Oliver didn’t need John to say what was clearly on his face: it might not actually be up to him. 

 

The stranger called exactly an hour later and this time they were prepared for the voice that took over their systems. The voice was silent and then spoke. 

 

“Well, men, what’s the verdict?” 

 

Oliver was not in the mood for humour. He stepped up and said, “We will work with you, on this and only this. You are not to interfere in anything else we do here or in our personal lives.”

 

“Sounds fair.” The voice replied. 

 

“And…” Oliver said quickly, his voice higher. “You will tell us who you are.” 

 

There was no response for a few minutes. John and Oliver exchanged a glance. 

 

“I cannot do that.” The voice said. 

 

And before Oliver could insist, the voice went on, “Look, I know why you guys need to know who I am. I do. And I understand! But, for my own peace of mind, I do not want to tell who I am. And I know what you’re thinking, I am hiding something or maybe I’m being held captive. It’s none of that.” 

 

“But, I can give you a little honesty, if it helps.” 

 

They waited. 

 

“I live a peaceful life. IT is my background and compared to you guys, my life is boring. I read novels and watch bad TV. I have never been involved in any criminal activities and this is my first time getting out of my comfort zone.”

 

The voice had not given them much, but at least there was a person behind that voice. 

 

“And…” The voice said, sounding resigned. “I am a woman.” 

 

That made John and Oliver stand up straighter, even though they didn’t know why. Being a woman made no difference to Oliver but, it did soften everything a little and he hated himself for it. 

 

Finally, he spoke, more like growled, “You’re not telling us much.” 

 

“That’s all I can give right now. I am sorry but trust me, I want to help.” The voice,  _she_ replied. 

 

“What do we call you?” John asked, 

 

“Overwatch.” was her reply. 

 

“Well Overwatch, let’s start with you taking us through all these files,” John said, a relieved smile on his face. 


End file.
